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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: bore · lean · nail · mate · deal · game · band · cold

  1. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. bore — to tire
  5. game — wild animals
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. cold — an illness
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. mate — to breed
  10. band — a ring
  11. lean — to bend
  12. lean — thin
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. cold — not warm
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. deal — to handle
  19. mate — a partner
  20. band — a music group
  21. game — a match
  22. bore — to drill
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. lean — to rest against

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com